Rewound
by Adalia Zandra
Summary: An SG1 MacGyver crossover centered around Jack and MacGyver. HC, kidfic. See part one for plot summary and important warning. WIP.
1. Chapter 1

**Rewound  
**by **Adalia Zandra**

* * *

Disclaimer: _I don't own these characters, they aren't mine, I'm just borrowing them, so please don't sue me. Thanks!_

Fandom: Stargate: SG-1, Season 2.  
Crossovers: MacGyver, post series. You don't need to know much about MacGyver to follow this story, except that the character was also played by RDA and hence looks identical.

Category: Angst, H/C, kidfic.  
Status: Work very much in progress. So far, nine parts have been outlined in longhand. I currently (as of the posting of this chapter on 2/28/06) don't have a beta for this project, and I wouldn't mind one. If you're interested, send me a message at _adaliazandra at yahoo dot com_.

Rating: The Rating Formerly Known As NC-17.  
Warnings: _PLEASE NOTE: This story involves rape and child abuse. Here there be monsters._

Summary: _The Powers That Be have decided that SG-1 needs a civilian observer. Everyone is surprised when Jack's identical twin shows up at the SGC. Will the full story of the twins' past come to light? Who is really behind the idea of a civilian observer? And what trouble will SG-1 find on their supposedly simple mission?_

Author's Notes:_ I've always wanted to write a kidfic, you'll see in later chapters what the title means. If anyone's curious . . . Google and trial by error make a great way to find a planet designation that nobody's used before. Anyway . . . as promised, here is my first posted SG-1/MacGyver crossover. Please expect updates every once in so often, because I have a full time schedule as a college undergrad to juggle along with working on this story. (Though, as always, enthusiastic reviews prompt quicker updates.) And now, on to the fic!_

* * *

"Anyone want to explain this to me again?" Jack asked as SG1 made its way to the briefing room. 

"It's not complicated, Jack," Daniel replied for the thousandth time. "The powers that be have decided that we need a civilian observer."

"But why?" Jack whined. "What the heck is a civilian observer going to do?"

"I believe his function would be to observe, O'Neill," Teal'c supplied helpfully. Jack glared at him, reasonably sure that Teal'c was making fun of him. When the glare didn't work he stuck his tongue out at the Jaffa, who simply raised an eyebrow in amusement, and continued on down the hall.

"Anyway, Sir, we only have to deal with him for three days. One mission off-world, that's all," Sam said.

"Key word, Carter, off-world. He'll just be in the way. Civilians are pretty useless off-world . . ." Daniel started to complain, but Jack held up a hand and cut him off. "Present company excluded, of course."

"We actually only have to take him to a planet we've already surveyed, you know, not on a real mission," Daniel reminded them.

"And you might try to go a little easy on the poor guy, Sir, for General Hammond's sake. He's got to deal with the observer's reports."

"Go easy on him? Who me? I have no idea what you could be talking about. I'm the picture of innocence," Jack grinned.

"Yes, Jack," Daniel sighed.

Jack ignored him and bounced through the door into the briefing room. General Hammond was standing at the head of the table.

"Is our civilian friend here yet, Sir? I should start terrorizing him right away, got to live up to Cap'n Carter's expectations."

"Oh, he's here, Colonel. In fact, he's right over there," the General replied with a slightly confused look, pointing over Jack's shoulder to the other side of the room. "And I think you're going to have a little explaining to do."

"'Scuse me, Sir?" Jack said, but Hammond just motioned to the other side of the room again. Hearing the surprised gasps of his team members in the door behind him, Jack turned around to see what had gotten everyone so excited. At the opposite end of the briefing room there was a small table set up with coffee and tea. Standing in front of it was a man who was the spitting image of Jack, albeit with longer hair, calmly holding a steaming Styrofoam cup.

He had a grin the size of Hammond's beloved Texas plastered on his face as he took a step forward and waved at Jack, who was literally standing there with his mouth hanging open. "Close your mouth, Jonathan," he laughed.

Jack followed the command without thinking, then opened his mouth again to protest, "Hey, now wait a minute! I thought we had a deal about our names, _An—_"

The other man winced at the near use of that particular moniker, and relented. "Alright, Jack, jeeze."

"That's better," Jack laughed, moving forward and holding out his hand.

The other man put his cup down on the table and not only shook hands, but pulled Jack into a quick hug. "Nice to see you again," he said into Jack's ear.

"You, too! But what are you doing here?" Jack asked, pulling away to regard his look-alike.

"I was going to ask you the same thing. I had no idea the military had stashed you away down in this mountain."

"Colonel . . ." Hammond said, reminding Jack of who else was in the room.

"Oh, sorry, Sir," Jack jumped and turned around again. His teammates had stepped into the room and were standing next to the General. "Um, General Hammond, guys, I'd like you to meet Mr. MacGyver. He's my, um, brother."

"Twin," MacGyver corrected.

"Twin brother," Jack said, nodding.

"You have a twin?" Daniel asked.

"And you don't mean a mirror-jumping, alternate-universe twin, right?" Sam checked.

"No, Carter, I do not mean an alternate mirror thingy copy of me. I mean twin. As in . . ."

"Twin," MacGyver finished for him.

"Right," Jack agreed, continuing on with the introductions. "This is Captain Samantha Carter, Doctor Daniel Jackson, and Teal'c."

"Nice to meet you, Captain Carter," MacGyver said as they shook hands.

"Call me Sam," she smiled at him.

"Alright, Sam. Call me Mac," he replied. "Doctor Jackson?"

"Daniel," Daniel supplied, also shaking hands.

"It is an honor to meet you, Mr. MacGyver," Teal'c said with his customary nod.

"So, Jack, how come you never . . ." Daniel trailed off, waving one had expressively.

"Told you? You never asked. It never came up. Something like that," Jack mumbled, examining the briefing room floor.

"I want to know why there is no mention of him anywhere in your files, Colonel," Hammond asked pointedly.

Jack shrugged and waved a hand vaguely in his brother's direction before slumping down in his usual seat at the table. "Well, Mac? Explain yourself."

The others seated themselves around the table as well and looked to MacGyver.

He shrugged. "It's a combination of things. I wouldn't have been mentioned in any of Jack's files prior to the early nineties, anyway, because . . ."

"Because," Jack interrupted, "until then nobody but me even knew he existed. And I wasn't even too sure."

"Lot's of people knew I existed, Jack," he glared at his brother. "The two of us just hadn't seen each other since we were eight. You see, we were . . ."

". . . separated," Jack interrupted again, "after a messy court battle . . ."

". . . which Jack can fill you in on later. The next time we saw each other was in . . ."

". . . in a dinky little Middle Eastern country, where I saved his civilian butt . . ."

". . . in Yemen, where we were both working on the same assignment . . ."

". . . and I saved his civilian butt . . ."

". . . Jack, stipulating that his butt is civilian and you saved it once ten years ago in Yemen, can we get on with this?" asked an impatient Daniel.

"Sure, Danny, just as long as we've got that stipulated," Jack replied with a grin, and then motioned for Mac to continue.

"Anyway, since that . . . incident . . . was classified six ways from Sunday, I don't know whose records of what it would show up in."

"That still doesn't explain why you aren't in later files, Mr. MacGyver," Hammond pointed out.

"I'm sure you've read his file by now, General," Jack said, "so you know that I'm not mentioned in his, either, and that between the two of us we've been involved one way or another in nearly any secret operation you'd care to name in the past two decades."

"Well, Jack has," Mac corrected. "Most of the ones I get myself into are usually strictly above board."

"Right, Mac. That's why you're down here in the midst of the world's most secret operation ever, trying to explain why you look exactly like said operation's 2IC," Jack said sarcastically. "Anyway, my point is that it was in everyone's best interest not to advertise our relationship."

"At first, anyway. Jack's paranoia in that regard has lessened over the years. We don't actively hide it, anymore. At least, I don't," Mac said, giving his brother a suspicious glance.

Jack didn't reply to the comment, but simply contented himself with looking innocent. He knew he wasn't fooling anybody, but did it anyway for appearance's sake.

"Alright, people," Hammond said, cutting off Sam and Daniel as both started to ask questions. "Now that we've cleared that up somewhat, let's get on to the briefing, shall we? I know it's this is a surprise to us all, but you can interrogate them later."

Sam caught the look Hammond sent her, _And I want to hear all about it._ Carter smiled back at him. He was just as curious as the rest of them.

"Yes, Sir," Jack said. "What planet are we taking this little tour to again?"

"P3X-652, Jack," Daniel reminded him.

"Oh, yes," Jack replied, nodding. "I remember that one. The one with the trees . . ."

"In fact I believe many of the worlds we visit through the Stargate could be described as such, O'Neill," Teal'c said with a raised eyebrow.

Mac looked in amazement at Teal'c. The alien noticed his gaze and returned it calmly, with maybe just a hint of a smile.

Mac laughed out loud and said, "I see they've learned how to handle you here, Jack."

Jack couldn't decide who to glare at, his brother or the Jaffa, so instead he turned to Hammond.

"And what will we be doing on the lovely P3X-whatever it is, Sir?"

"Captain Carter has expressed an interest in taking a wider range of soil samples," Hammond replied.

"Yes, Sir," Carter said. "The samples I took near the gate during our original survey have been run through the lab and look promising."

"Naquadah?" Daniel asked.

"Very possibly," Sam replied. "Actually, I'd like to visit the ruins the UAV picked up and take some samples near there."

"Oooh, that's right. Aztec ruins, but we didn't have time to go check them out," Daniel flipped open the mission folder in front of him and took a closer look at the notes on the planet. Intrigued, Mac also opened his copy of the mission brief.

Smiling paternally at Dr. Jackson's enthusiasm, General Hammond "The ruins are about a day's walk from the Stargate. SG-1 will spend a day at the ruins to give Dr. Jackson a chance to look around, and Mr. MacGyver a chance to observe a field operation and make his evaluation."

"So we're going to hike through the woods for three days, Carter's going to play with dirt, and Daniel's going to play with rocks," Jack said.

"Pretty much, Sir," Carter replied.

"And Mac's going to tag along and observe this exciting activity. Is anyone else worried that it's these so-called simple missions that always get complicated?" Jack questioned.

"P3X-652 is one of the worlds from Ancients' database. Since no sign of a Goa'uld presence was found it was decided that this would be a 'safe' planet to take Mr. MacGyver along to," Hammond replied.

Jack looked skeptical. "No off-world mission is ever really safe, Sir. And no offence, Mac, but a civilian who's never been off-world before tagging along is not going to make things any easier if something happens. And something always happens, Sir."

"I know that, Colonel, but I wasn't the one who made the decision. As it stands, Mr. MacGyver's assignment is to observe SG-1 during a routine off-world mission. He was chosen specifically for his ability to perform his duties as an observer as well as function as a member of the team if a situation does arise."

Jack started to protest again but Hammond cut him off with a raised hand.

"I know what you're going to say, Jack, and I want you to think about it for a moment before you insult your brother's abilities. I'm sure you know his files as well as anyone."

"Better than anyone, that's why I'm worried," Jack mumbled. Mac sent him a 'Who, me?' look that the other members of SG-1 found to rival Jack's own. Jack ignored him and went on, "Alright, Sir. I'm sure SG-1 can manage to keep Mac out of trouble for a few days off-world. Right, guys?"

"Yes, Sir."

"Sure thing, Jack."

"Indeed, O'Neill."

"Hey! I resent that remark," Mac complained.

"Don't you mean you resemble it?"

"You've always been a worse trouble magnet than me, Jack."

"That's debatable, Mac."

"Alright, you two," Hammond cut in, standing up. "I think it's time you took this to the commissary. Mr. MacGyver came here straight from the airport and I'm sure he must be pretty hungry. The mission is a go, you leave tomorrow at 0700. SG-1, if you could escort our guest. Colonel, I'd like to speak to you for a moment."

"Yes, Sir," Jack said. "Go on, guys, I'll catch up. Save me a seat and some blue Jell-O."

"Okay, Jack," Daniel replied, leading the way out of the briefing room.

When they were gone Hammond said frankly, "Are you going to have a problem with this, Jack?"

"Because he's my brother, Sir?"

Hammond nodded.

Jack sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "It was certainly a surprise. I haven't heard from him in a few months."

He paused for a moment, then went on, "But I don't think so, Sir. I know Mac can take care of himself in a tight spot. My reservations are the same as if it were any other civilian observer. Honestly, I actually feel a little better knowing it's him. I trust Mac."

"Are you sure, Colonel? If you're not comfortable with it we can put this on hold until another situation can be worked out. We might be able to arrange for him to observe SG-2 or 3 instead."

"Are you kidding, Sir? He and Ferretti would drive each other nuts inside of an hour and I don't even want to think about what would happen if we let the SG-3 marines get their hands on him. They'd either kill him or he'd convert them. You do know he's rabidly anti-gun, right, Sir?"

"It says as much in his files. You don't have any problems with him coming on this mission, Colonel?" Hammond asked again.

"As long as I'm on record as having issues with this whole civilian observer thing in the first place, no, Sir. I don't have a problem with it," Jack replied.

"In that case, you and SG-1 make sure you show your brother a good time."

"Yes, Sir."

"Mr. MacGyver has already been fully briefed as to the nature of this program, and been given several of SG-1's previous mission reports to familiarize him with our normal procedures. He still needs to go over the standard field kit and get checked out on zat weapons, though. I trust you and your team can take care of that today," Hammond said.

"Yes, Sir. Shouldn't be a problem," Jack replied.

"One last thing before you go. Especially in light of your relationship with Mr. MacGyver, I feel I should let you know that I've heard rumblings about making the position of civilian observer into an ongoing, permanent function," Hammond said, a speculative look crossing his features.

Jack, for his part, blinked nonchalantly. Hammond looked almost concerned about the possibility. Jack filed away the information for future consideration and simply drawled, "Oooookay, Sir. Doesn't sound too bad."

Satisfied, Hammond smiled. "Alright, then. Go join your team, Colonel. I'm sure your brother is already regaling them with embarrassing stories."

"Not if he knows what's good for him, Sir. But you're right, I'd better go make sure," Jack grinned back.

"Go on, get out of here, Jack," Hammond laughed.

"Yes, Sir, getting out of here, Sir," Jack tossed over his shoulder as he left the room.

Hammond shook his head with amusement as he headed back to his office.


	2. Chapter 2

**Rewound  
**by **Adalia Zandra**

_For summary, important warning, and other details, please see part one._

_Author's Note: My laptop is currently KIA. I'll be sending it to the (theoretically) more knowledgeable computer people at the University Help Desk soon in the hopes that they'll revive the poor thing. In the meantime, I'm updating from whatever computer I can grab time at . . . so things will probably continue to progress slowly with this story. Have no fear, though, for it _will _progress._

_This part will seem largely familiar if you've read other SG/M stories . . . it's the standard SG-1 and Mac getting used to each other stuff. But there are some nice juicy backstory bits in there for 'ya, too. I've played with the early SG-1 timeline a little bit to make it all work, kind of stretching things out a bit in between Charlie's death and the events of the movie, I hope you'll forgive me. On to the fic!_

* * *

Miraculously, nobody they passed in the corridors on their way to the commissary for lunch seemed to even notice that there was something a little wrong with the way SG-1 looked. Relative newcomers to the base didn't know any better, and anyone who'd been there much longer than that was too used to odd goings on to even bat an eye.

That's not to say that there weren't things to notice. Teal'c's appearance was completely normal as he brought up the rear of their group, but the other three members of the team were definitely acting somewhat out of character. Dr. Jackson and Captain Carter walked on either side of a man who looked and acted very much, but not exactly, like Colonel O'Neill. At first glance, one might simply assume that it was O'Neill returned to base after an extended leave, over which he had allowed his hair to grow uncharacteristically long.

But Jackson and Cater were both practically bouncing with excitement and curiosity, and seemed to be vying over his attention like a pair of children whose father had just come home. They hardly seemed like a professional pair of brilliant scientists. "O'Neill" looked back and forth between them as they took turns firing questions at him, trying his best to answer their queries but finding it difficult to keep up.

"When we were rigging the dialing protocols for the 'gate we used your name as a verb to describe all the creative fudging we had to do. Honestly, we would talk about _MacGyvering _things to make them work! I always wondered why, and it never occurred to me that I might actually meet you someday and find out. What did you really do to get that reputation? I've heard some stories, but I'm not sure I believe all of them," Sam's words came tumbling out, nearly tripping over each other.

"You guys used my name as a verb? I knew some of the Phoenix folks have done that for years, but I didn't know it had spread . . ." Mac replied, blushing a bit, and was then cut off as Daniel jumped in.

"And I swear I've read about several astonishing archaeological discoveries that you've been a part of in the last decade or so. Ambrose's treasures, the Eye of Osiris, to name a few. I'd love to talk to you about the Eye of Osiris, it might actually be important to our work here . . ." and then Daniel was cut off as something else occurred to Sam.

"Ryman! Dr. Ryman. I met him when I was an undergrad, he did a lecture series at the Academy in my third year. He told us stories about you as a student, but I never connected that with the stories I heard later. Oh, what was it he used to say? Something like, 'There's nothing so pathetic' . . ."

". . . as a physicist stupefied by the obvious. Yeah, that's Professor Ryman. I didn't know he lectured at the Academy," Mac replied. "And the Eye of Osiris really wasn't anything special, Daniel, unless you have a thing for _really _big precious stones."

The group reached the door to the commissary and Teal'c stopped the rapid-fire conversation by suggesting that they step inside and obtain lunch. Mac's stomach chose that moment to growl in protest against his recent lack of proper attention to diet. Mac grinned sheepishly and followed his escort inside.

They made short work of the lunch line, filling their trays with the foods that appealed to them. Ever curious, SG-1 watched with barely concealed interest to see what Mac's choices would be. He picked up a pre-wrapped deli sandwich where O'Neill would have chosen a burger. But as he took a moment to decide between Jell-o and pie, finally grabbing a slice of fresh apple pie, O'Neill's team couldn't help but smile.

They staked out SG-1's usual table and spent a few moments digging in. Mac really was ravenous. He made it through one half of his sandwich and had started on the other by the time Daniel and Sam could no longer hold back their curiosity.

They started in on him again, moving past their hero worship to begin wondering what MacGyver could tell them about the enigma that was Jack O'Neill. Before they could get any information out of him, the commissary doors banged open and everyone in the room was distracted by the entrance of one irate looking Air Force Colonel.

Those not in the know, namely everyone except SG-1, found themselves staring at _two _O'Neills. People were wondering which one was actually the colonel, and if perhaps they should call security.

"Hey! You'd better not be telling my kids any stories about me, Mac!" called the one who had just made his entrance.

The other regarded him with a blank, innocent stare. Then he blinked, and called back, "If you want to save your reputation you'd better get your rear end over here, Jack, and save me from the Inquisition!"

"Alright, alright, I'm coming. Keep your shorts on," the newcomer replied with a grin, heading for the food. As he grabbed a predictable burger and pie, SG-1 and the other "O'Neill" returned to their own food. Gradually, everyone else in the room decided that this must be a normal oddity, as opposed to a world-threatening oddity, and eventually they all turned back to their own meals and conversations.

Those at the SG-1 table made room for Jack as he approached. He pulled a chair over and sat between Daniel and Sam, putting himself across the table from his brother. He graciously accepted the blue Jell-o that Daniel had obediently saved for him and put it aside for later.

"So what dirty lies has this joker been telling you?" he asked then, motioning across the table with his burger before biting into it.

"Their virgin ears are unsullied, I promise you. Are you gonna eat those?" Mac asked, pointing to the fries that came with Jack's burger.

"Help yourself," Jack replied, turning the plate so that Mac could reach the fries. "Still have a weakness for deep fried potato, huh?"

"You bet," he answered as he grabbed a few. "These are pretty good, too."

"I'm glad our commissary meets your exacting standards," Jack grinned, and Mac grinned back around another mouthful of fries.

Watching this exchange, the other three members of SG-1 were again struck with the similarities between the brothers. But they'd had enough of the Jack and Mac Show, and they were still very curious about this previously hidden aspect to their colonel's life.

"So, Jack," Daniel started.

"Daniel?" Jack answered, raising an eyebrow at the scientist.

"Jack," Daniel replied, slightly exasperated.

"Daniel," Jack kept it going, this time nodding slightly to the other man as the others at the table tried to keep from laughing.

"Jack!" Daniel cracked first.

"Fine, fine. What do you want to know?"

"Mostly why you have a brother that you never told us about," Daniel replied mildly.

"We've been over this, it wasn't a good idea to make our relationship public . . ." Jack sighed.

"I'm not talking about public, Jack. I'm talking about us. SG-1," Daniel waved his hand to indicate Sam and Teal'c.

Jack just shrugged, taking another bit of his burger to cover for his lack of a response. Finally, he swallowed and said, "So I'm paranoid. You knew that already."

Daniel shook his head and rolled his eyes. There was no getting a straight answer out of Jack. Unless, of course, his paranoia was the straight answer. Daniel wasn't quite ready to accept that, but he knew when it was time to let it drop for a while.

"Sure, Jack," he said amicably.

The group spent a few minutes working on their lunches. Daniel looked like he was about to try asking something a few times, but he never actually spoke.

Finished with her small lunch and seeing that Daniel had in fact given up, Carter then took the opportunity to try a question of her own. "So do you guys have any other family?"

"I have a son. But that's about it," Mac replied.

Everyone perked up at the mention of a son, momentarily forgetting what was left of their meals.

"How is the young whippersnapper, anyway?" Jack asked as the others reigned in their surprise and went back to finishing up their lunches.

"He's doing fine. He's off getting pictures of various rivers for his portfolio. Something about balancing the green and the blue," Mac shrugged.

"Sam's a photojournalist," Jack clarified for the others.

Carter blinked.

"Oh, that's his nickname," Mac explained. "It's his initials. Sean A. Malloy."

"Not MacGyver?" Daniel wondered.

"Nope, it's his mom's name. I didn't meet the kid until he was nineteen," Mac said, shaking his head with a combination of wonder and regret.

"Do you not have other relatives, O'Neill and MacGyver? I have learned that many human families are quite large indeed," Teal'c intoned, noticing Mac's expression and changing the subject.

"You've been watching too much TV," Jack said. "Not all families are alike. When we were split up we each got adopted by a different family. The MacGyver family took in this bum and I got shuffled around a bit before I met Richard and Margaret O'Neill."

"But over the years, everyone in both families has passed away. It's just the two of us and Sam, now," Mac finished.

Everyone had finished eating and the conversation had drifted to a halt, leaving the group with an uncomfortable silence and nothing with which to politely distract themselves.

Sam, Daniel, and Teal'c had all noticed the bitterness in O'Neill's voice and the sadness in MacGyver's. Wanting to fill the silence and move on, Daniel started collecting the trash on the table. First Sam moved to help him, and then Teal'c. The three of them gathered up everything and headed to throw away the trash and bus the trays, leaving the twins alone at the table for a moment.

"You okay?" one asked the other.

"Yeah, sure," came the reply. They shared a look, then stood together and headed across the room to meet the others at the door. They each walked with a casual slouch, hands tucked away into jacket pockets.

"So, what's next?" MacGyver asked as they all stepped out into the corridor. "I know there's a bunch of stuff I'm supposed to go over before I get to go off-world."

O'Neill nodded. "Next stop is the actually the locker room. We gotta get you into some real clothes."

"What's wrong with the clothes I've got now?" Mac complained as his brother dragged him towards the nearest elevator. "Just because they aren't drab olive green . . . I'll never understand the military."

Sam and Daniel chuckled as the twins disappeared around the corner into the next hallway, and even Teal'c had a small smile for the brothers' antics.

"Well, I've got to go work on putting together my equipment for P3X-652. I'll see you guys later," Carter said, heading the other way.

"Bye, Sam," Daniel replied. "C'mon Teal'c, let's go make sure those two don't get into too much trouble on their own."

"That would indeed seem wise, DanielJackson," Teal'c agreed with a raised eyebrow, and they started off towards the locker room.

They caught up with the twins just as they reached the locker room. Before the brothers could continue their argument about clothing, the base PA clicked on and O'Neill was paged to the infirmary.

Looking sheepish, Jack admitted that he'd skipped his checkup that morning. "Why don't you guys give Mac a set of my BDUs for now, while I go appease the Doc? Just make sure he keeps his visitor's tag obvious."

He received nods and mumbles of agreement, so Jack headed off to do battle with Dr. Frasier.

Teal'c headed for O'Neill's locker to find appropriate clothing for Mac. Left standing with MacGyver, Daniel decided that this was the perfect opportunity to try to get more info. Like a dog with a bone, Daniel was still nibbling away at the puzzle that was his friend Jack. He was hoping to get some clues from Jack's brother.

But Mac beat him to it. "Why did Jack have a checkup this morning? Don't you guys do pre-mission medicals the morning of a mission, not the morning before?"

"We do, it wasn't pre-mission. Jack picked up some sort of off-world pathogen on our last trip out and I suspect Dr. Frasier just wants to make sure he's over the symptoms. He was only cleared for active duty again yesterday," Daniel explained.

"An off-world pathogen, huh? Jack can find trouble anywhere he goes," Mac smiled.

"He sure can," Daniel agreed. "I suppose you know a lot of juicy little details about your brother."

Mac shrugged. "Actually, I probably know about as much about him as you do. Jack is secretive at best, and we haven't always gotten along too well."

"You haven't?" Daniel asked, surprised. From what he could tell, the brothers acted like old friends.

"No," Mac mused, looking pensive. He didn't explain, and Daniel sensed that he should let it be. They waited in companionable silence, Daniel watching as Teal'c found and sorted piece after piece of Jack's spare clothing in his search for the items that MacGyver needed.

MacGyver's gaze also pointed towards Teal'c's search, but he wasn't really paying attention. Daniel's question and his often strained relationship with his brother occupied his thoughts. It had only been a few short years since he had thought he'd lost his brother forever.

The tragedy that struck Jack's small family when his young son accidentally shot himself with Jack's service weapon had driven a wedge between the brothers. Jack had been depressed and angry, and had pushed away anyone who had tried to help. Eventually even his wife had given up and left him. Mac had gone to Jack one last time, to try to talk to him.

It had not gone well. Jack was belligerent and insulting, intentionally pushing Mac away. And Mac, being human, finally snapped. They had argued, and Mac had said a few choice words about gun control. Jack had punched him, and Mac had left. They didn't see each other again for two years.

Worst of all, Mac caught his brother's mood at that last visit. Angry at himself, at Jack, and at the world in general, Mac had retreated from his own friends. Few of them even knew about Jack, and it seemed like too much effort to explain everything. He spent a truly miserable week sulking alone before Pete, his oldest friend, came to find out once and for all what was wrong.

Pete succeeded in pulling him out of his depression, but nothing could change what had happened, and what Mac had done. The next two years were filled with a painful silence between the brothers. Mac discretely kept tabs on Jack, and finally got up the courage to contact him when he heard that Jack had been reactivated and then retired for the second time.

He'd been surprised to find Jack oddly at peace. They'd even apologized to each other, and spent some quality time with a pair of hockey sticks and a puck. They saw each other relatively often over the next year, until Jack's second reactivation.

After that Jack had been busy again and they'd slipped back into the familiar pattern from their first few years of knowing each other as adults. They would check up on each other roughly once a month, but pretty much stayed off of each other's radar. It was another year and a half before Mac found out what it was Jack had been up to since his reactivation.

"I believe I have found the required items of clothing, MacGyver," Teal'c interrupted Mac's musings.

"And I've found an extra set of SG-1 patches," added Daniel, who had gone to look for the little Velcro patches in his own locker while MacGyver had been lost in thought.

"I get to wear SG-1 patches? Sweet," Mac replied, rooting himself firmly back in the present.

"Yeah, you're attached to SG-1 for the duration of your stint as civilian observer," Daniel explained. "Which means you are officially, if temporarily, a member of the team."

"Sweet," Mac repeated, taking the set of clothing Teal'c offered him.

"I would be honored to go over the standard field kit with you, MacGyver," Teal'c said.

"I'd like that Teal'c," Mac answered.

"Well, I guess I should go get ready for this trip, myself. I need to look over my preliminary findings from our first visit to the planet and get ready to look at those ruins," Daniel said.

"I'd love to talk to you about the archeological and anthropological aspects of your missions, Daniel," Mac said, a gleam of interest in his eyes.

"Sure, why don't you come find me when you and Teal'c are done? I'll probably be in my office," Daniel smiled.

"Will do," Mac nodded.

"See you later, guys," Daniel called, heading out.

"So, Teal'c," Mac said when Daniel was gone. "What are these Zat weapons I've been hearing so much about?"

"Zat'nik'itels are small handheld energy weapons. Their use is simple: one shot stuns, the second kills, and the third disintegrates," Teal'c explained.

"First shot only stuns?" Mac asked, intrigued. He'd always wanted to play with a phasor. Beyond the physics of it, which itself was fascinating, it was a non-lethal way to incapacitate an enemy. And besides . . . it sounded really cool.

"Indeed," Teal'c assured him. "You must qualify with this weapon before tomorrow's mission. Would you like to do so now?"

"Would I ever!"


End file.
